This Week
The Omaha men's basketball team takes off for the Windy City this week, traveling to Chicago State on Monday, Dec. 29. Tipoff is set for 7:05 p.m. at Jones Convocation Center in Chicago, Ill. Gary Sharp will have the radio call on 1180 Zone 2, and fans can also stream the audio on their smartphones by downloading NRG Media's app “1620 The Zone.” Links to live stats, audio and video will be available on OMavs.com.
    
Scouting the Chicago State Cougars
Chicago State carries a record 4-10 (0-0 WAC) into Monday's game after falling 63-38 at SIUE on Dec. 22. Rahjan Muhammad led the Cougars with seven points on 3-of-7 shooting, while Johnny Griffin had six points with a game-high eight rebounds. CSU is led by fifth-year head coach Tracy Dildy, who owns a record of 38-103 at the school.

Monday marks the fifth meeting all-time between Chicago State and Omaha. The Mavericks lead the series 4-0, and the two teams last faced each other on Feb. 19, 2013, when UNO won 79-75 at Ralston Arena.

Quick Hits
•Junior guard Marcus Tyus tallied a season-high 20 points with a career-best nine rebounds against UT Pan American on Dec. 21.
•Junior guard Devin Patterson was named Summit League Player of the Week on Dec. 22., which was the first weekly league award of his career. He leads the Summit League in both steals (28) and assists (51) this season.
•UNO has five players who average 8.0 or more points per game, and seven different Mavericks have scored in double figures in at least one game.
•According to kenpom.com, UNO is second nationally in adjusted tempo, which estimates of the possessions per 40 minutes a team would have against a team that wants to play at an average Division I tempo. Omaha's adjusted tempo is listed at 75.9, behind only VMI's 78.0.
• When scoring 40 or more points in the first half, Omaha has gone 5-0 this season.
•The Mavericks have scored 20 or more points off turnovers in four of their 11 games so far.
•Omaha has taken a 16-point lead in the first five minutes of play twice this year. The Mavericks went up 16-0 against Iowa Wesleyan on Dec. 10 and 23-7 at Nebraska on Nov. 25.
•UNO earned its first win over a power-six conference on Nov. 22 with a 97-89 triumph at Marquette.
•The Mavericks shot a season-best .571 at Marquette. In the last three years, Omaha is 17-5 when shooting .500 or better as a team, including a perfect 4-0 this season.
•UNO has tallied double-digit offensive rebounds seven of its 11 games: 26 vs. Central Arkansas, 11 at Seattle, 11 at Marquette, 15 at Air Force, 11 vs. Iowa Wesleyan, 17 at UMKC, 12 vs. Northern Colorado and 12 vs. UT Pan American.
•Since the 2012-13 season, Omaha is 18-10 when senior guard CJ Carter scores 15 or more points in a game.
•This year, UNO is 4-1 when Patterson tallies 20 or more points.
•The Mavericks have hit at least three 3-pointers in 64 consecutive contests since Dec. 9, 2012.
•Omaha leads the Summit League in points per game, field goals made per game and rebounding margin.
•The Mavericks were picked sixth in this year's Summit League preseason poll.

Last Time Out: Mavericks Remain Perfect at Home, Top UTPA 77-72
Omaha improved to a perfect 5-0 at home on Dec. 21, defeating UT Pan American 77-72 at Ralston Arena. Junior guard Marcus Tyus led the Mavericks with a season-high 20 points and a career-high nine rebounds. The Ramsey, Minn., native shot 8-of-13 for the day, including 3-of-4 from long range, and added two assists and two steals.

Junior guard Devin Patterson had 17 points on a 6-of-10 shooting effort, as well as five boards, three assists and four steals. Freshman forward Tre'Shawn Thurman chipped in 14 points and six rebounds, and senior forward Mike Rostampour finished with 12 points and five rebounds.

As a team, Omaha shot .458 (27-of-59) from the field to UTPA's .438 (28-of-64).

Patterson Named Summit League Player of the Week
Junior guard Devin Patterson was named Summit League Player of the Week, the conference office announced Dec. 22. It marked the first weekly league award of Patterson's career.

A native of Portsmouth, Va., Patterson averaged 20.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.5 steals in a pair of Omaha victories. Against Northern Colorado, he poured in a team-high 23 points on 7-of-12 (.583) shooting and dished out four assists to go along with three rebounds. Versus Texas-Pan American, Patterson scored 17 points on 6-of-10 (.600) shooting, pulled down five rebounds and had four steals and three assists. For the week, he shot 59.1 percent from the field, 57.1 percent from beyond the arc and 83.3 from the free throw line.

Omaha has had two players earn Summit League Player of the Week recognition this season, as senior guard CJ Carter was previously honored on Nov. 24.

Terrific Twosome Tearing It Up
Senior guard CJ Carter and junior guard Devin Patterson are the second-highest scoring duo in the Summit League this season. Their combined average of 30.3 points per game is behind only South Dakota's Brandon Bos and Tyler Larson (32.3 ppg).

Individually, Carter ranks fifth in the conference with 15.5 ppg, while Patterson is seventh with 14.8 ppg. Additionally, Carter has eight double-figure scoring games and has led Omaha in scoring four times, while Patterson owns seven double-digit scoring performances and has led the Mavericks in five games this year.

Rebounds by Rostampour
Senior forward Mike Rostampour is second in the Summit League for rebounding this season. The West St. Paul, Minn., native is averaging 7.6 rebounds per game, up from his 5.8 rpg at this point last year.

Rostampour has grabbed at least six boards in each of the last six games, including his third double-digit rebound effort of the season with 11 vs. Northern Colorado (Dec. 17).

Rostampour Achieving On and Off the Court
In addition to his contributions on the court this season, senior forward Mike Rostampour hit another milestone off the court on Saturday, Dec. 20. Rostampour participated in UNO's winter commencement, graduating with his bachelor's degree in criminology and criminal justice. He will pursue graduate work in the coming spring semester.

House of Carter
CJ Carter's position in UNO's record books has been rapidly rising during his senior season. He is eighth all-time for career assists (301), 10th in steals (122), 13th in 3-pointers made (113), 14th in scoring (1,182 points) and 19th for field goals made (415). On Dec. 17 against Northern Colorado, the Omaha native passed former Maverick Art Allen (1968-71) on the scoring list, and he is now 14 points away from tying Jim Gregory (1977-81) for 13th.

Up Next
Omaha returns to action on Friday, Jan. 2, traveling to South Dakota. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. at the DakotaDome in Vermillion, S.D., and Gary Sharp will have the call of the game live on 1180 Zone 2. Links to live stats, audio and video will be available on OMavs.com.